Betty and Veronica
"Betty and Veronica" was the sixteenth episode of the first season of Veronica Mars. In this episode, Veronica investigates the mysterious disappearance of Neptune High's mascot, a parrot named Polly, and eventually goes undercover at Neptune High's rival, Pan High. Meanwhile, in flashbacks, Veronica deals with the aftermath of finding her mother. Synopsis Veronica searches through her stuff and finds a microphone in a pencil sharpener, suggesting that Clarence Wiedman was tracking her. Veronica waits for Wallace after a basketball game until Principal Clemmons pulls her aside. Principal Clemmons asks Veronica to find the school's mascot, a bird named Polly, which has recently been stolen. Veronica agrees to help in exchange for a letter of recommendation from Principal Clemmons and a new locker location. The principal and others think that a rival high school, Pan High, took the bird. Veronica goes undercover at Pan High as "Betty", but their basketball players act as surprised as Neptune's at the theft of Polly. Soon after, Veronica receives news that the Pan High mascot, a goat named Billy, has also been stolen. Flashing back to where the previous episode left off, Veronica confronts her mother about her feelings for Jake Kane. Lianne says that she knows Jake Kane is innocent because they were together at the time of the murder. Lianne informs Veronica that she was at the hotel with Jake was to "protect her." With Sheriff Lamb on vacation, Veronica asks Leo for the interrogation tapes from Lilly's murder investigation. Undercover at the school, Veronica sees people congratulating a nerdy looking boy, Richie, on stealing the parrot. Veronica talks to Richie and flirts with him, asking if he would give her a tour of Rest Stop 15 (a place where students go to park, buy and sell, etc.). Veronica calls Weevil with the parrot information, and lets Weevil know of the plan to meet at Rest Stop 15. Upon arriving at Rest Stop 15, Richie is confronted by Weevil. Richie says that the parrot in the picture is not Neptune's mascot; he went to a pet shop and took a picture with a parrot for attention. Leo brings back the Lilly Kane investigation tapes to Veronica. In a flashback, Lianne says that she does not know who Veronica's real father is, and that a paternity test would be needed. Veronica listens to the interrogation tapes, and she hears Keith talking to Jake Kane. Wallace leads Veronica to a truck where he is harboring Billy, the stolen Pan High mascot. Veronica sends Wallace to deliver a "gift" to Clarence Wiedman's assistant; a bugged plant, similar to the bug that Clarence planted on Veronica. Veronica listens to Keith's interrogation of Celeste Kane. That night, Veronica goes on a date with Leo before she sees Meg with Duncan on a double date with Jake and Celeste at the same restaurant. Flashing back one more time, Lianne reveals Celeste's knowledge of the affair. Veronica points out a mistake in Jake and Celeste's story — Lianne says that Celeste was at the hotel for 20 minutes, while Jake and Celeste said they were there for 2.5 hours. Polly's thief projects a video message during the morning announcements, declaring that if Wallace plays in the game against Pan High, Polly will be killed. Veronica talks with Meg, who says that the announcements are pre-recorded the night before, meaning the thief had access to the announcements that morning. The two examine the video, and Veronica sees a basketball number on the thief's sneakers. Veronica steals both Polly and Billy back and frames the actual culprit — a Neptune boy who stole the parrot so he could start in place of Wallace and sabotage Neptune's chances of winning the basketball game. We learn that the player's motive was to win a large amount of money by accepting bets on the game in favor of Neptune, and then throw the game for Pan. Veronica checks her mother into a rehabilitation center after discovering she has a drinking problem. This costs Veronica ever dollar that she has saved over the years. Veronica talks to her father about her discovery that Abel Koontz is someone's proxy. Veronica uses the bugged pencil sharpener to her advantage, stating that she knows who collected Abel Koontz's money from being bribed into going to jail. Veronica, assuming that Wallace has delivered the "gift," listens. Clarence Wiedman asks his assistant to call Amelia DeLongpre, and Veronica finds out that she is Abel Koontz's daughter. Arc significance * Veronica learns that Clarence Wiedman planted a bug in her room, and by listening in on her was able to use Veronica to locate Lianne. *Lianne tells Veronica that she knows Jake Kane wasn't the one who killed Lilly Kane because Lianne was with Jake at the time of Lilly's murder. Cultural references A variety of cultural references are made in the episode: *Veronica references the Wildlife Alliance and the film Valley Girl. *Veronica misquotes an Academy Award speech of Sally Field. *Veronica says that the Neptune High vending machines carry Orangina. *Veronica calls herself a "human Google". *Lianne reminds Veronica about a time when she wanted to have Cyndi Lauper's haircut. *When Lianne tells Veronica that her meet-up with Jake Kane was just to talk to him, Veronica snippily replies "On the day all the Starbucks were closed." *Wallace says that the goat ate his Air Jordans. *Veronica references the 1976 supernatural horror film Carrie. *Richie compares Rest Stop 15 as a cross between Inspiration Point, a location in Happy Days, and Tijuana. *Veronica chooses the alias "Betty" at Pan High School, which is a reference to the often at-odds characters Betty and Veronica in Archie Comics. As "Betty," she says she is a transfer student from Riverdale. *Polly, the mascot of Neptune High, was also a reference to the sister of Betty from Archie Comics. Cast Main Cast *Kristen Bell as Veronica Mars *Percy Daggs III as Wallace Fennel *Teddy Dunn as Duncan Kane *Jason Dohring as Logan Echolls *Francis Capra as Eli "Weevil" Navarro *Enrico Colantoni as Keith Mars Guest Stars * Corinne Bohrer as Lianne Mars * Alona Tal as Meg Manning * Max Greenfield as Leo D'Amato * Lisa Thornhill as Celeste Kane * Christopher B. Duncan as Clarence Wiedman * Kyle Searles as Richie * Kyle Secor as Jake Kane Music * "Pick Up the Phone" - The Notwist * "You And Your Kind" - The Brown Mountain Lights * "A Chorus Line" - Ultramagnetic MCs * "Rabbit" - The Fire Marshals of Bethlehem * "Nothing Is Wrong" - The Brown Mountain Lights * "Fall Behind Me" - The Donnas * "Headphonland: The Gangster Chapter" - Mice Parade Quotes :Veronica: Hi. I'm … Betty. So, you guys all play basketball? :... :Veronica: I love basketball! I'm kind of a freak when it comes to sports, I totally get into it. :Richie: Are we talking face painting? :Veronica: Face painting, hair streaked the color of the school. At my old school, I was Horny! … We were the Rhinos. I was the mascot. :Richie: And what school was that? :Veronica: Riverdale. :(Note: Riverdale is the high school from Archie Comics, which featured characters called Betty and Veronica). ---- :Weevil: Where's the bird, Wilson? I'm nearly bursting with Pirate pride here. Weevil wanna punch a cracker. ---- :Veronica: Can you do me a weird favor without asking any questions? :Wallace: Isn't that the bedrock upon which our friendship was founded? ---- :Veronica: Pan High, the un-Neptune. Just 13 miles away, but when those miles are heading inland, there are no yacht clubs and no 5 million-dollar homes with coastal views. The parking lot is full of American-made cars from the '90s and the vending machines don't carry Orangina. People here hate Neptune as much as I do. Goofs. * In the beginning, when Veronica is searching her room for the bug, you can see a crew member in the mirror of the bathroom as Veronica is passing by it. * When Veronica and her mother in the bar, her mother's hair switches parts, and between messy and smooth, in consecutive shots. External links * Soulful Spike Society's Open Case. * Television Without Pity Recap. Category:Season 1 Episodes